The Alumni Association of the Graduate School of Arts and Sciences (GSAS) will hold its annual meeting on Thursday, Oct. 6, from 6 until 9 p.m. in the Low Library Rotunda. The meeting will include a talk delivered by one of GSAS's most accomplished alumni, Paul LeClerc (GSAS'69), president and CEO of The New York Public Library. LeClerc's talk, "A New Version of the Janus-faced Figure: The Quondam Academic Who Lives and Works Outside the Classroom and Laboratory," focuses on the importance of maintaining the life of the mind regardless of what career one pursues.

LeClerc became president and CEO of The New York Public Library in 1993, leading the institution during the creation of one of the most advanced library IT systems and a complete renovation and modernization the library's historic buildings. Collaborations between The New York Public Library and Columbia University Libraries have been successful models of cooperation for mutual benefit.

After receiving a Ph.D. in French from GSAS in 1969, graduating with distinction, LeClerc served in leadership roles for other institutions of higher education, including president of Hunter College and provost of Baruch College. A board member of Columbia's Maison Française, he holds honorary doctorates from La Sorbonne Nouvelle, Brown University and Oxford University. The French Government has recognized his distinguished merit by making him an officier of the Academic Palms and a chevalier of the Legion of Honor. In 2004, he was presented with the Dean's Award for Distinguished Achievement by GSAS.